Eight NBA stars who could change teams this summer
5) DeAndre Jordan
If the Clippers end up losing Blake Griffin in free agency on top of their Chris Paul trade, keeping DeAndre Jordan around wouldn’t make much sense. What would make much more sense would be trading Jordan as part of a full-on rebuild.
Jordan, who turns 29 this summer, has two years and $48 million remaining on his contract, though the second year is a player option. Jordan has led the league in field goal percentage five years running, is a two-time rebounding champ, and he’s a two-time first-team All-Defensive player.
Teams looking for a strong rebounder and defender in the middle would love to add Jordan if the Clippers try to trade him. Prior to the draft, the Clippers were shopping the center.
Jordan is a valuable asset who will bring back a lot in a trade. The only thing that could limit his trade market is if a team is informed that Jordan will opt out of his contract and leave after next season. Teams might not be inclined to give up a ton if they think they’re getting just a one-year rental.
6) Kyle Lowry
Lowry is a three-time All-Star and just a year removed from an appearance on the All-NBA team, but manages to be something of a forgotten man in the free agent discussion. Perhaps that is in part because he falls behind Paul and Stephen Curry — who will be back with the Golden State Warriors — in the class of free agent point guards. The reality of it, though, is that Lowry averaged a career-best 22.4 points per game and seven assists as well.
The Toronto Raptors will want Lowry back, and they can point to DeMar DeRozan being under contract for the foreseeable future. Lowry, though, has made clear that he wants to win a championship, and he will have to assess whether he thinks Toronto can provide him with that opportunity. If his answer is no, he’s a good bet to land elsewhere. He might be more likely than anyone else on this list to end up with a new team.
7) Kevin Love
Will it happen? Love’s name has come up in trade rumors since he was acquired by the Cleveland Cavaliers, with the forward occasionally coming across as a square peg in a round hole. He did win an NBA title, though, so the last laugh was ultimately his.
Love is still in his prime, and he is under contract for at least two more seasons with a player option for a third. The Cavaliers don’t actively want to move him, but if they trade for someone like George, he will likely be the cost. His name was included in the complex three-team trade talks centering around George. At the moment, the odds are that Love will still be a Cavalier at the start of next season — but Cleveland may be motivated to make a big move to placate LeBron James. If they do, Love is probably the collateral damage.
8) Kristaps Porzingis
How realistic are the Porzingis trade rumors? It’s hard to tell. The Knicks — and to a large extent, Phil Jackson — were clearly embarrassed by Porzingis skipping his exit meeting. Porzingis pointed to the dysfunction surrounding the organization, which led Jackson to publicly say he was entertaining trade offers for the Latvian big man.
On Wednesday, Knicks owner James Dolan fired Jackson, potentially for even considering the possibility of trading Porzingis. It didn’t matter that Jackson’s asking price was said to be exorbitant.
One has to wonder what will happen with Porzingis now that Jackson is gone. Will the team’s new leadership make it clear they’re unwilling to move the big man? Or is it too late to completely mend fences with the 2015 draft pick? If it’s the latter, Porzingis could still end up traded at some point, though the Knicks’ high asking price would certainly limit a trade market.